Stronger Together: The Complementary Power of Yoga and Pilates
As a devoted Yogi looking to support my practice and teaching, revisiting Pilates has brought forth a significant shift in my stability and body awareness.
Although uniquely different, Yoga and Pilates share a similar focus on mindful movement and breath control, which are at the epicenter of each practice.
This complimentary union can enhance proprioception (how we move in space) and a heightened sense of wellbeing. If Yoga is your dedicated practice and you’ve considered trying a new form of movement, Pilates could become a seamless complement to your overall balance and muscular stability.
If you’re less familiar with Pilates, the sequences explore precise movements that efficiently build strength in smaller muscle groups and realign posture. The sequences are often practiced on the back, the belly and the side body. Sometimes classes include a variety of props or apparati, while some are offered on the reformer and other Pilates classes are simply on the mat to activate body resistance minus prop support.
A hallmark of becoming a regular Pilates student is that we begin to notice how detailed the practice is inside the movement, how Pilates breathing improves core alignment, and how steady our Yoga practices start to feel.
The mantra of Pilates is core stability through length, and this does not mean abdominal strength alone. Rather, the core or ‘powerhouse,’ as Joseph Pilates referred to it, includes the spine, chest, shoulder blade, pelvic floor, hip and inner thigh muscles. This comprehensive group of movers and stabilizers are like the hub of a wheel, making all body movement possible in all directions. Essentially, when they’re working well and in alignment with each other, we remain uplifted and level with the horizon.
The powerhouse muscles also reinforce our internal balance while practicing Yoga because we feel solidly grounded and effortlessly elevated.
Consider the Yoga pose Warrior III. You are standing on a grounded foot with opposite leg extending straight back. Your chest and spine stretch forward and drawing hands to the heart feels possible until your outer hip says, ‘hold on, we’re sinking’. Maybe you intended to bring awareness to your core but, you were focused on your balancing foot. Of course, adjustments are normal and often take a bit to finesse.
However, after practicing Pilates regularly, Warrior III can swiftly become lighter and steadier. You’ll notice that you float up from your standing leg without hesitation, the stamina inside the pose has extra life and your core turns on like second nature. In fact, both sides of your Warrior III are sturdier rather than shaky.
Along with balancing well, my favorite part of practicing Pilates is the emphasis on slow, deliberate transitions into movement and out of movement.
My Pilates practice feels lyrical when I am attuned to my sensations and breathing, all while actively in a pose.
In this way, the essence of Pilates (Contrology or conscious control of movement) is honored because I’m focused on how I’m moving rather than hurrying through a challenging sequence. This is the magic moment where muscular coordination and mental focus blend and we begin to integrate lasting strength into the whole body.
An important consideration in blending practices like Yoga and Pilates is that once we feel sustained stability and balance in our movements, preventing overuse pain and injury become the norm.
Overstretching no longer feels like progression because the core muscles have learned to stabilize the range. Collapsing in balance or avoiding one side in favor or the other, is replaced by symmetrical stamina. We all want efficacy and longevity in our practices and a deep sense of wellbeing. I know how uplifting these shifts feel in my body. When I’m moving well and consistently, I show up for a whole bunch of things with renewed optimism.
As a final note, we have the option to cross-pollinate our practices to renew core strength, long term stability and muscular space, even if you think there’s no way I can do Pilates. I’ve been in the practice, away from it and know how responsive and resilient the muscles can be.
Together, Yoga and Pilates will fine tune our focus and allow us to take a deep dive into poses that need more attention. The results are a beneficial combination of moving more fluidly, with enhanced body consciousness and elevated perspective. We are stronger when combining our efforts together.
